I've Been (Almost) Everywhere

With no upcoming county collecting planned for the next month, here’s a fun post (I hope) for regular readers. Over the weekend, a friend and I were discussing the song “I’ve Been Everywhere,” which many people know from the 1996 (yes, 1996 ) Johnny Cash recording. Of course the North American version has been around since 1962 when it was a number one county hit for Hank Snow (yes, he is Canadian ). What many in the US don’t realize is that the original version of the song was from Australia, full of Australian towns and places. (Wait, didn’t we have a similar discussion a year ago about the song “A Pub with no Beer”? https://insiders.marriott.com /message/186320?messageTarget=all&start=200&mode=comments#comment-186352 ).

Regardless, the version of I've Been Everywhere" we know in the US lists cities, towns, and other places in the US and Canada, plus a few from Central and South America. I’ve been asked a handful of times how many of these places I’ve visited. Including Winnemucca, which is listed in the opening line of the song, I’ve been to 61 of the 92 locations mentioned (amazingly I’ve also been to 10 of places listed in the Australian version). While I don't plan on trying to get to everywhere mentioned, there are quite a few more I know I will reach (a few of the ones I'm missing are county seats, after all ).

Here are the lyrics to the US/North American version. I’ve highlighted in red, the places I have not visited. Notes at the end provide a bit more detail on the places I have visited. Looks like I still have some work to do if I really want to be able to say “I’ve Been Everywhere.”

"I've Been Everywhere" (lyrics by Geoff Mack)

I was totin' my pack along the dusty Winnemucca road, When along came a semi with a high an' canvas-covered load."If you're goin' to Winnemucca, Mac, with me you can ride." And so I climbed into the cab and then I settled down inside. He asked me if I'd seen a road with so much dust and sand. And I said, "Listen, I've traveled every road in this here land!"

14Visited Catalina, AZ near Tucson. Would love to get to Santa Catalina Island someday.

15Gravelbourg is in Saskatchewan, which I have never visted

16Eldoraado, TX

17Chasak, MN; Alaska is on my travel plans for 2018; Opelika, AL

18Going to Sioux City, IA in August

Hope this was fun for everyone (it was for me, though bit of work on the research part ). I’m off to Sioux City, IA and then into parts of Nebraska in about a month. With only 92 counties collected so far this year, I need to pick up the pace. At least I know the next trip will push me over the 2,000 county mark. You’ll be able to read about it here in late August.

If you've seen the wonderful musical, Million Dollar Quartet, the song provides one of the best laugh/groan lines for the Johnny Cash fans during the show... [Cash, asked by Phillips why he’s been so hard to reach, replies “I’ve been everywhere, man.”]

This list, having been created by the songwriter, isn't a travel goal that holds any meaning for me. It was fun seeing how many of the places I had visited. I'll probably end up between 70-75 out of 91 just by pursuing my personal travel goals. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that someone decided it would be worthwhile to get to all the named destinations. More power to them. I've got plenty on my list already.

Oh, come now. Washington is on the list. I seem to recall some recently posted photographic proof that you've been there.

Besides, it's not your list, so it makes sense you might not go to most of the places mentioned. I'd say you have a pretty great list of places you've been as well as places you want to go. At the risk of offending someone by dissing their hometown, I'd say you're not missing too much in places like Baraboo, Waterloo, or Kalamazoo.